Hot Women Celebrity Pics

Taylor Lautner

In 2005, Taylor Lautner won the role of Shark Boy in the Robert Rodriguez film, The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D. He spent three months on location in Austin, Texas filming. Months later, Taylor Lautner successfully auditioned to play Elliot, the son of the Bakers' rivals, in Cheaper by the Dozen 2.

Lindsay Lohan

Lindsay Lohan starred as Anna Coleman alongside Jamie Lee Curtis in the 2003 family comedy Freaky Friday. At Lohan's own initiative, her character was rewritten and changed from a Goth style to be more relatable. Critic Roger Ebert wrote that Lohan "has that Jodie Foster sort of seriousness and intent focus beneath her teenage persona". Freaky Friday earned Lindsay Lohan the award for Breakthrough Performance at the 2004 MTV Movie Awards and, as of 2010, it remains her most commercially successful film, earning $160 million worldwide as well as an 88% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes.

Leonardo DiCaprio

Leonardo DiCaprio's breakthrough came in 1992, when he beat out hundreds of other boys for the role of Toby Wolff in This Boy's Life, co-starring Robert De Niro and Ellen Barkin. His performance as the troubled, abused teenager was critically acclaimed and Hollywood soon took notice. Later in 1993, he co-starred as the mentally handicapped brother to Johnny Depp in What's Eating Gilbert Grape. Leonardo DiCaprio's performance earned him both Academy Award and Golden Globe nominations for best supporting actor.

Carmen Electra

In 1995, Carmen Electra started appearing in television programs. In May 1996 Carmen Electra was featured in a nude pictorial in Playboy magazine, the first of several. This exposure led to higher profile television appearances, including Baywatch (cast member from 1997–1998, as Leilani "Lani" McKenzie) and MTV's Singled Out. Carmen Electra returned to Baywatch for the 2003 reunion movie, Baywatch: Hawaiian Wedding.

George Clooney

George Timothy Clooney (born May 6, 1961) is an American actor, film director, producer, and screenwriter. For his work as an actor, George Clooney has received two Golden Globe Awards and an Academy Award. George Clooney is noted for parlaying his celebrity into social activism and has served as one of the United Nations Messengers of Peace since January 31, 2008.

Busy Philipps

Busy Philipps worked the toy-fair circuit as a real-life Barbie before making her show-business debut. Her first major role was as the part of Kim Kelly in Freaks and Geeks, in which she appeared in 17 of 18 episodes (the exception being the episode titled "Chokin' & Tokin'"). Busy Philipps later made her film debut in comedy The Smokers in 2000, as well as various other cameos on television.

Jessica Biel

Jessica Biel was born in Ely, Minnesota, to Kimberly Biel (née Conroe), a homemaker and spiritual healer, and Jonathan Biel, an entrepreneur and international business consultant. Jessica Biel has a younger brother, Justin, born in 1985. Biel has German, French, English, and Choctaw ancestry. Biel's family moved frequently during her childhood, living in Texas, Connecticut and Woodstock, Illinois, before finally settling in Boulder, Colorado.

Matt Damon

Matthew Paige "Matt" Damon (born October 8, 1970) is an American actor, screenwriter, and philanthropist whose career was launched following the success of the film Good Will Hunting (1997), from a screenplay he co-wrote with friend Ben Affleck. The pair won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay and the Golden Globe Award for Best Screenplay for their work and Damon garnered multiple Best Actor nominations, including the Academy Award, for his lead performance in the film.

Jennifer Ellison

In 2006, Jennifer Ellison released Jennifer Ellison's West End Workout, a fitness DVD which combined her love of dance with exercise routines.

Serena Williams

Serena Williams is the younger sister of former World number 1 Venus Williams. They have played each other in 23 professional matches since 1998, with Serena Williams winning 13 of these matches as of October 2009. As of July 2009, they have met in eight Grand Slam finals, with Serena Williams winning six times. Between the 2002 French Open and the 2003 Australian Open, they met in all four Grand Slam singles finals, the first time in the open era that the same two players had contested four consecutive Grand Slam finals. The pair have won 11 Grand Slam doubles titles together.

Carmen Electra

Carmen Electra moved to California in 1994, where she met Prince while auditioning for an all-girl rap group. Prince persuaded her to change her name to Carmen Electra and instead record a solo album. Soon after, Carmen Electra signed a recording contract with Prince's company Paisley Park Records, marking the start of a short-lived singing career.

Car Buying Tips

Car Buying Tips

Hot Women Celebrity Pics

How To Find and Make a Good Deal in Tough Times

Whether you believe we're in a recession or simply a slow economy, the news hasn't been good. The housing debacle, credit crunch and tumbling dollar mean many consumers have a hard time making car payments and paying for fuel. As a result, more people need to get out of their car lease early, delay buying a new car, or buy a used car instead of a new one. And with gas prices near $4 per gallon, there will be more demand (and probably fewer deals) for compact and hybrid vehicles.

Automakers are also tightening their belts, closing dealerships, eliminating "twinned" vehicles and carrying some of their lowest inventory levels since 2002. That translates to less selection on the car lot.

So consumers are caught in a tug of war: Car dealers, most of whom already are facing hard times, need to increase their profitability — just as car buyers are trying to spend less. This affects the entire car-buying process, from vehicle availability to new car financing and incentives to lease deals and the price of used cars. Here's what you can expect and how to best take advantage of the slow economy's impact.

Financing Your New Car

Historically, automakers and dealers have pumped up sales with financial incentives, and this slow economy is no exception. Expect to see higher cash rebates (manufacturer-to-customer and possibly dealer-to-customer), and more zero-percent financing and low APR programs, particularly from domestic automakers.

While such auto incentives used to blanket an entire brand, this time around expect automakers to cherry-pick which models get big incentives. Understandably, the biggest discounts will be on large, gas-guzzling trucks and SUVs. Incentives will also vary from one geographic region to another depending on vehicle demand.

Rules of thumb for auto incentives:

* Unless there's a zero-percent program or the interest rate is less than the prime rate, keep your term as short as possible. To help decide which program is better for you, use our Low APR vs. Cash Back calculator or this basic rule of thumb: If you'll keep your car three years or less, take the cash. Four years or more, take the low APR.

* If you're considering switching brands, ask the sales manager (not just the salesperson) about any "conquest" rebates. This can mean up to $1,500 toward sweetening the deal.

* Beware of the six- and seven-year car loans that are trickling down from very expensive brands to more mainstream ones, such as Toyota. Don't use a longer-term loan to get into a vehicle you can't really afford or to spread the cost of a negative-equity trade (being "upside down" on your current vehicle).

* Unless your credit is good, be prepared to put down a larger down payment or look for a used car instead. It's more difficult than before for folks with below-average credit to find car financing, as banks and finance companies are tightening their standards.

Car Leasing

As a countermeasure against falling residual values, a number of manufacturers have overhauled their leasing programs. So if you leased in the past, the same rules may not apply. Additionally, many lease payments will be so high that consumers will have no choice but to go to a less expensive vehicle — one they can actually afford.

In addition, keep the following advice in mind as you shop for a new lease:

* Credit requirements will be tighter. In some cases, only people with the best credit will qualify for manufacturers' leases.

* Dealers will urge people to buy rather than lease and extend the loan terms to 60, 72 and even 84 months. (Warning: This results in more "upside-down" buyers and more buyers will carry negative equity from one car loan to another.)

* The higher payment might still make sense if you can take the tax write-off as a business deduction.

* Check several banks, smaller leasing companies or your credit union for a good lease. (Our financing tab will help you get rates from different companies.)

* If it suits your needs, look to foreign automakers, whose lease programs are stronger.

* Consumers looking to take over someone else's lease can visit Lease Trader or Swapalease.

* Buying looks better than ever, especially with dramatic incentives in both cash and financing.

* Carmakers will offer low-interest financing to try to match low lease payments of the past.

Used Cars Are Affected, Too

As the amount of money in consumers' pockets goes down, people who cannot afford the new car they want will look at less expensive new models, but will consider used cars as well — possibly for the first time. Say you're a Ford guy with your heart set on an Explorer, but you can't afford a new one. You could consider an Escape, or you could simply buy a used late-model Explorer instead.

This means that older cars that are "clean" — in good condition — will hold their value and depreciate less quickly. For example, a very clean eight-year-old Honda Accord with 60,000 miles may cost a few hundred dollars more than it used to, as consumers compete for reliable (and fuel-efficient) vehicles.

Rules of thumb:

* There is a silver lining: If you currently own a good car, it will retain its value better than before the economic slowdown when you sell or trade it. Use Edmunds' Used Car Appraiser to learn your car's True Market Value® (TMV®) so you can hold out for the right price.

* If your current car is still under warranty and in very good condition, dealers will want it for their Certified Pre-Owned (CPO) programs.

* More CPO cars will be available on dealer lots. They cost up to $1,500 more than the same car without certification, but offer peace of mind and longer warranties.

* Compact vehicles will hold their value better overall, as people start realizing the cost of all that horsepower. Ask yourself if you really need a V6 when a four-cylinder engine will do the same job.

So Where Are the Deals?

If you do nothing else before buying a new car, at least check the latest auto Incentives and Rebates and Deals of the Month for a head start. Remember, there are always bargains to be had, even in tough economic times.

For new cars:

* Look again at larger vehicles. If you don't put a lot of miles on your car each year, the discount programs on these vehicles may more than outweigh the difference you'll spend in fuel.

* Due to the weak dollar, luxury and midrange vehicles from European automakers may offer new incentives.

For used cars:

* There are very sweet deals on recent model-year vehicles that didn't sell that well when they were new. Many of these are rental or fleet vehicles (former company cars), including Chryslers (like the 300) and minivans. Some examples: A 2007 Ford Five Hundred SEL four-door sedan with a 3.0-liter engine and automatic transmission had a $23,785 MSRP, and an invoice price of $22,031. You can buy it used now for around $16,995. Similarly, the 2007 Kia Sedona LX with a new MSRP of $24,295 can now be bought used for under $18,000.

* Don't wait too long to buy: There may be less selection to choose from come summer/late summer than in years past, since people who don't have the money to buy a new car may choose to hold onto their cars longer.

In the meantime, if you do decide to hang onto your car for a while longer, make it last using our tips, "Top Five Ways to Make Your Car Run Forever."